“You have to have Fugazi on a list of politics-related punk,” she explained. “They’re D.C., right? And also, this is what the midterms are like this year — a lot of bad-mouthing.”

Next, she selected another band out of Washington, D.C., Bad Brains, and “I Against I,” the title track from their third album:

Maddow dedicated this particular song to Colorado Rep. and current senatorial candidate Cory Gardner (R-CO).

“The whole thing he has been as a member of Congress is ‘Mr. anti-abortion, Mr. ban contraception,'” she said. “He’s been this champion of these personhood things in Colorado. Now he’s running as the anti-personhood guy.”

Midterms as a whole, Maddow said, can be summed up by her next selection, “I’ve Heard It Before,” by Black Flag (NSFW — lyrics), but it can also apply to certain conservative arguments in this year’s elections.

“No matter what the issue is that needs to be addressed, the solution is ‘close the border,'” Maddow said. “So like, ISIS is a problem in Syria — ‘close the border.’ Ebola is a problem in West Africa — ‘close the border.’ Taxes are too high on medical devices in the Midwest — ‘close the border.'”

“Young people don’t turn out in midterm elections,” she said. “And because the youth vote decays, we have a very different outcome, usually, in midterm elections than we would have in elections that excite more youth to get out and cast votes.”

For her final selection, Maddow picked a happier tune, Husker Du’s “Books about UFO’s,” poking fun at conservatives who avoid discussions about scientific realities by saying, “I’m not a scientist.”

“Science is cool,” she argued. “Science makes you fall in love with people who read books about UFOs.”

About the Author

Arturo R. García is the managing editor at Racialicious.com. He is based in San Diego, California and has written for both print and broadcast media, including contributions to GlobalComment.com, The Root and Comment Is Free. Follow him on Twitter at @ABoyNamedArt